I am a 23 year old female and think I might have been involved with someone who had HIV. As of April 2000 it will be a year since I was with this person. I was tested in Sept and Oct of 1999 and both tests were negative. At the end of Oct I had a abscessed gum due to wisdom tooth. At the same time my mouth blistered along my gum and cheek. This has happened twice after that. Could my wisdom tooth be the cause or could I still test positive to HIV? I know you are busy and don't get to answer all your questions but, I would really appreciate if you could answer this. I have been threw hell with doctors and have really done nothing but cry because I am scared.

Thank you

Response from Dr. Reznik

The fact that you tested after 6 months of a potential exposure shows that you have addressed this concern. Half of all people who are infected will seroconvert by 25 days

on the newer EIA tests, which are used in the US. The older tests had a longer median time. For sexual exposures, the general recommendation in the US is to test out to 3 months.

I believe your concern is a result of coincidence. An abscessed or infected wisdom tooth can cause many symptoms such as swelling of the surrounding gingiva (gum tissue) and buccal mucosa (cheek). This type of irritation/trauma may lead to an outbreak of "blisters". The big question I have for you is have you dealt with the problem you are having with your wisdom tooth? Many times symptoms can be relieved with the use of systemic antibiotics, but the underlying cause is still there. So, bottom line: I would highly suggest that you visit an oral surgeon to have the problem tooth removed before it causes any more problems.

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